Tangible Tidbits 2012 #23: A Flurry of Activity!

Hey, everyone! Well, I’ve FINALLY finished my Bead Challenge project for BSNJ over the weekend. It’s not due until June 28, but I wanted to get it out of the way and not wait until the last minute. I changed the category from bracelet to necklace, as the cuff bracelet I was attempting to make was not coming together as well as I’d like. I still think it was a good idea, and I may revisit it at a later date. :)

I received my recommendation letter from my former professor at MSU the other day. He wrote a very nice letter, and specifically mentioned that I am “willing to take criticism,” which made me chuckle. I emailed him back and told him I thought the director of the Metalwork & Jewelry program at MSU might not agree. :)) I still have to take a couple more pictures this week before the deadline on Friday. I’m hoping my mother will either model pieces for me or be willing to take my picture. I have two necklaces I want to include as part of the application. Mom is not very technologically-inclined, so please wish both of luck! :-S

In addition to Wire-sculpture.com’s 2012 Druzy Contest -- which I had mentioned previously -- there are two more contests coming up that I may or may not enter. Beaded Impressions has a Beading Contest with a deadline of July 8. The categories include Whimsical or Romantic; Eclectic or Bohemian; and Traditional. I may enter my Bead Challenge project in the "Eclectic or Bohemian" category. Once you see a picture of it, you’ll see why. ;) I can’t post it or describe it before the June meeting because some of my BSNJ friends may read this or see my Facebook page. :-S I also received an email this morning about Fire Mountain Gems and Beads' Swarovski Elements Jewelry-making Contest, with a September 30 deadline. I don’t really have anything existing that I’d like to enter, so I have to see if I am inspired over the summer to come up with something appropriate...I'm thinking maybe an elaborate pair of earrings. :-? I still haven’t decided if I am going to enter the Druzy Contest, but I will concentrate on a project for that now that I have completed the Bead Challenge piece. The deadline is June 30, which is part of why I wanted to finish the Bead Challenge project early. If I can’t figure something out in the next couple of weeks, I will just skip it. :|

I'm looking forward to attending a workshop in Tinton Falls on Saturday called "Jazz Up Your Bead Embroidery," being taught by my friend Meg Fillmore of Bead My Love. :)

On a personal note, I had another NAET treatment on Saturday...this one was to complete the areas that were only partially cleared in previous treatments -- namely corn, chocolate, and nut mix I, which includes peanuts. I had headaches off and on all day Saturday, so I didn’t accomplish much. :P Man, will I be glad when these are over! #-o

Our weather can’t quite decide what it wants to be these days. Lots of storms passing through the area lately and it seems to be humid one day; cool the next. Morris County got hit hard with a storm yesterday. A couple of towns there may be without power for 2-3 days! :-O

Two ladies at work requested earrings, which I have to work on tonight...and I have a bunch of recent projects that I have not priced out yet. I seem to put that off as long as possible. Since I am switching out pieces at the chiropractor’s office again tomorrow, the last minute is pretty much tonight! I guess it's a good thing I am more or less required to do it every two weeks. ;)

Take care and have a great week! B-)

Tangible Tidbits 2011 #9: Another Month Bites the Dust...

Hi, everyone! Hope you have all been enjoying your weekend. It was pretty chilly here on Friday night and again today, but it was mild yesterday...and it's been SUNNY! We did end up having another snowstorm last Monday. I had predicted that the snow would melt just in time for us to get some more. :p Luckily, it was only a few inches and a lot of it is gone already. :)

As promised, here's Something Tangible's new Focal Piece of the Month. It's an Irish pin, in honor of St. Patrick's Day coming up, that I made as a birthday gift last year. :)

I've also uploaded my new video to YouTube. This was the final group activity from the Empowered Entrepreneurs weekend in early February. As you can see, I still have to work on improvising my "script" on the fly. :o Considering this was only the third day I'd even attempted to record myself on video, though, it could have been a lot worse! ;)



We're still working the kinks out of the new video sales page, but I think we'll have it up by next week's post. :)

I made my deliveries this week, and got a few new orders, too! One month to go in the quarter, so I'd better get moving if I want to make my sales goals. ;)

Our new class assignment for my MSU Metalwork and Jewelry class is to make a palm-sized, wearable replica of one of the tools in the studio. Preferably one that actually functions! :o We'll have another week on this one, thankfully, as I still don't know what to make! :\ I'm hoping for divine inspiration by Tuesday, so I can use the class time to get going on it.

Can you believe February's over already? :p Have a great week! :D

Tangible Tidbits 2011 #2: Not Quite Making The Grade

Hey, gang! We had another dusting of snow Friday/Saturday, but nearly as bad as the one on December 27. Rumor has it we're due for another six inches on Tuesday/Wednesday of this week. I've had enough of winter already! LOL

Well, I got a B+ in my Metalwork & Jewelry Beginner II class. I was disappointed, more in the professor than the grade...although it does bring down my GPA. Had I gotten an A-, I would have accepted that as an acknowledgment of my efforts, even if he didn't agree with my taste. Giving me a B+ tells me that he can't separate technique from personal style. Luckily, he's not teaching my class this semester. :\

I submitted photos of pieces for consideration in two juried craft shows this week. There's an application site called ZAPPlication, and I registered for notifications of upcoming events. The two I am interested in attending are ARTRIDER's Spring CraftMorristown in Morristown, NJ March 18, 19, & 20, and Sugarloaf Craft Festival in Somerset, NJ October 28, 29, & 30. First time applicants to the ARTRIDER show are waived the $40 application fee, but I paid $45 to apply to Sugarloaf. I'm not sure how long it takes to find out if I have been accepted, but wish me luck! :D

This was the first week I haven't sent out a Virtual Mall Discounts & Deals e-mailing since the summer. It saved me a lot of time, so I'll be taking the option to subscribe to that mailing off the website with the monthly updates in a couple of weeks. ;)

You'll notice there are a bunch of new commenting options on the blog. I'd registered for CommentLuv a while ago, but they didn't have plug-ins for Blogger at the time. I found some this week, so I downloaded them...all by myself! LOL :)

In terms of the year-end figures, I didn't make my 50% increase in sales from the previous quarter goal, but I did surpass the previous quarter's figure. In fact, I more than doubled my sales from the 4th quarter last year. I think there was only one quarter since I've started that I didn't beat the previous quarter's sales. All in all, I'm making steady progress in a difficult economy, so I can't complain. :)

In personal news, I attended my younger niece's roller skating party on Thursday. I used to have my own skates (not roller blades) and went skating with my sister and a friend every Sunday morning in high school. Let me tell you, it is NOT like riding a bike! LOL :o It took me most of the party to get comfortable and loosen up on the skates. Naturally, after 20+ years, my center of gravity has changed. :o I also didn't have a bad knee back then. It popped out three times while skating on Thursday, but luckily I didn't do any long-term damage. :p And I think I only fell on my butt once. I don't think my brother-in-law got that on video, but he did get me skating like an old lady once or twice. :o

Enjoy your week! If you haven't checked it out yet, tune in to the People's Choice for TV's Best New Drama...Hawaii Five-0! It airs Monday nights at 10:00 p.m. on CBS. It's must-see TV! ;)

Tangible Tidbits 2010 #3: Keeping Busy!

I apologize for the delay in sending out this week's message, but I've had my hands full with taking classes, keeping up with the website, taking and fulfilling orders, plus working an unrelated full-time job to help keep this all going! Who needs sleep, right?

I attended my first meeting of the Bead Society of New Jersey (BSNJ) this past Thursday. I found out about the group at the Innovative Bead Expo last October. They meet monthly about 40-45 minutes south of here, which isn't bad as long as the Parkway isn't backed up. This meeting featured a challenge to create a piece of jewelry in 45 minutes given some chain, connectors, a focal piece and large piece of filigree. I didn't finish mine in time to be judged, but the winners received free merchandise from Kabela Design, hosts of the challenge and the guest vendor for the evening. They specialize in vintage materials -- antiqued gold, copper, etc. I bought some really nice things from them! :D BSNJ has some pretty fun and interesting things planned for the next few meetings from what I can tell, so I think it will be a good activity/organization for me to become involved with, and I met some nice people there.

I've got my final class at the Adult School coming up this Tuesday...and I'm FINALLY going to learn how to make RINGS! I'm pretty excited about that! I've really gotten a lot out of these classes and met some great people. I'm already looking forward to the one-day summer camp hosted by one of the teachers in July or August.

I also attended my first MSU Metalwork & Jewelry class on Friday night. This class is no joke! We have to do an oral presentation for the mid-term critique and submit 10 drawings a week in our sketch books. Luckily, I got a head start on those after I attended one class last fall, so I have 17 already done! :D

I've uploaded all of the sample photos to the GALLERY section of the Store, so the NOT FOR SALE section will be taken down soon. I'll wait until we update the site in the next week or so -- keep an eye out for the new Focal Piece of the Month -- so the intro to the Store will reflect the change and not confuse people. :)

Take care and thanks for your continued interest!

Tangible Tidbits 2010 #1: A Belated Happy New Year!

Well, we've finally got the website up and running, as you can see. The store was the last section to get squared away, and that seems to be functioning reasonably well. Please let me or the Webmaster know either here, through any of the links throughout the site or on the Contact Us page if you come across anything that doesn't seem quite right. We've been pretty thorough in checking everything out, but nobody's perfect.

I've gotten a lot of positive feedback on the site so far, so thank you to everyone who has contacted me about it. It's always good to have positive reinforcement. ;)

The next few weeks and months should be pretty exciting, so anyone who is impressed with what you've seen so far, hold on to your seat belts because we've only just started this ride! LOL Next week, I start a three-week course in Advanced Wire Jewelry at the Chatham, Madison & Florham Park Adult School, so expect the Kits from sb designs section of the store to expand quite a bit in the next month or so! Toward the end of the month, I start my Metalwork and Jewelry class at Montclair State University, which will include working with jewelry saws and solder...so, we're talking heavy duty stuff! That class will go until May, so I expect to have some pretty interesting projects to share and topics to discuss this spring as a result.

I'm also starting to do a bit more work "by special request," so you'll be seeing some unique items going straight into the NOT FOR SALE -- Photo Gallery of Samples for Design Purposes Only area. Feel free to contact me if you have a specific idea in mind and I'll let you know if I can make it work, given the limitations of my current abilities, your budget and the materials available. If I can't do exactly what you want, I'll try to propose something as close to it as I can possibly come within those pre-determined parameters. :)

I hope everyone had a safe and Happy New Year! May we all have a joyful, healthy, and prosperous 2010. :)